Blog of the Week: Soak the stick before beating

Lonely Planet Travel Blogs answer questions you never even knew you had. For instance, when you're in a Russian bathhouse, is it OK to borrow another guy's birch stick to beat someone with?

The answer is an emphatic "no," and you'd create a very awkward scene if you did. You buy your own birch stick outside the bathhouse before entering, and soak it until it's just the right flexibility for whacking a fellow bather, thus enhancing his bathing experience by evenly distributing the blood flow.

Where's the goofiest boat race in the world? Alice Springs, Australia, where every competition in the Henley-on-Todd Regatta takes place in the sand.

How do you see London, Paris or Rome when you only have an hour? Each of these cities offers "Sightjogging," where you can reserve a trainer to run you through the most famous tourist areas; sneakers not included.

Lonely Planet Travel Blogs boasts "326 authors, 173 countries, and 400 travel-loving staff." Blogs are roughly organized into categories such as Asia, the Americas, volunteer, culinary culture, and festivals and events. Especially useful for those about to travel is its breaking news - informing you of any festivals, garbage strikes, sudden infestations of ants or armed militias at your destination.

The Bluelist Competition winners feature some of the best travel writing anywhere, but almost every blog I read was nicely written. An especially thoughtful post, "When travel becomes toxic," warned of how popular destinations that were previously undiscovered and unspoiled reach a tipping point "where the introduced species, the traveler, becomes a pest species." Something to think about.

Even if your suitcase hasn't left the back of the closet in ages, Lonely Planet blogs are a fun read.